Pinch

I got an order of the vegan steamed dumplings at the Farmer’s Market. The only options are vegan or meat-​based. It was $ 8 for 6 dumplings and you could get a side of slaw. You had to choose either steamed or pan fried; I asked for 3 of each and they said no.
I wasn’t particularly impressed with either the slaw nor the dumplings. It doesn’t take much to please me on either of those because I just love both, but both flavors were just bland. The steamed dumplings were sticky and chewy in a slightly unpleasant way. I can’t eat soy, so I didn’t dip anything in the soy sauce, so perhaps they taste better with the soy. But on their own, they were seriously nothing to write home about. I’m glad I tried them for the sake of trying something new, but I won’t be getting them again.

Pinch has no permanent location yet and is selling dumplings and side dishes from a booth at the weekly Mid-​Pike Farmer’s Market in Rockville (future site of the Pike & Rose complex). I was tempted over to their stand by savory smells of basil and frying pork. The dumplings of the day were pork + stringbean or pork + shrimp, and I tried the first (only $ 7.00 for a half-​dozen). I had them pan-​fried instead of steamed, so they were more oily than they might have been, but were very good, moist with crisp edges, chewy and full of flavor. While they were frying, my server offered me a sample of one of their side dishes and I chose the «All-​Star Peanuts». I am a big fan of peanuts in cooking and have eaten them a lot of ways, but never any like this. They were boiled in allspice and star anise, and had a warm basil-​like flavor and spiciness without any peppery heat. Yummy!
According to Pinch’s website they have no intention of offering the usual broad-​based Chinese menu, and are 100% focused on producing «the most authentic Chinese Dumplings offered anywhere». The website lists four types of pork dumplings, plus lamb, crabmeat, vegan and mushroom, and four side dishes — period. This is admirable. It’s my experience that restaurants that focus on one thing and do it as well as possible are some of the best around here, and I’m much looking forward to visiting Pinch again both on the Pike and in their eventual location. I want to try the steamed dumplings next time, and I’m definitely getting more of those awesome peanuts!